Brave New World
by September Lungs
Summary: Beth Greene was just a simple farm girl before and even after the apocalypse began. But when a new group shows up at her home, she begins to question the way she was raised and who she truly is. Not to mention, the man with the cerulean eyes and a crossbow who changed everything. Rated M for language, violence and future sexual content. Beth/Daryl (Deth) fic.
1. Chapter 1

I haven't written in forever, but ever since I started reading other Daryl/Beth fics, I really wanted to make one of my own. I know I'm not the best writer, but I'm hoping that I can improve. So please, if you have any suggestions or would like to comment on what I have so far, don't hesitate to leave a review.

* * *

There was a rustling of leaves and a brief moment of being suspended in time continuum, following with a loud _thud _as Beth Greene fell to the ground. Having the wind knocked out of her was an understatement, she was almost sure that she had sprained or broken something. Taking a deep breath, she heaved herself up off the familiar grassy floor that surrounded her home. As she stood, she took in account that all her body parts were functioning correctly and breathed a sigh of relief. However, she did sport quite a few scratches from tree limbs that were sharper than normal. She had been trying to get a better look of the newcomers approaching the farm house. Ever since that boy named Carl, had been shot, people were turning up left and right. Her Daddy sure wasn't happy about it, but felt obligated to help since Otis was the one who had shot the boy.

Shielding her eyes from the sun to get a better view, her eyes widened as the group approached. After the apocalypse began, she was almost sure that the only human beings she would ever see again were those of her kin. The group had a sort of unity about them, an unspoken bond that you could just see with the way that they walked. The boy's parents were already here, but these people added a large number to the group that they were forming. She ran up to to her house and found Maggie in the living room. "Who in the world are all those people, Maggie?" Beth questioned, almost unsure. If there was one thing she had picked up from the world ending, it was that you couldn't trust anyone but your own blood.

"Must be the people with Rick and Lori, I'm assumin'," Maggie drawled, standing up to get a better look through the window's blinds. Beth giggled.

"I don't think you have to worry about gettin' caught spyin' anymore Maggie, it's the apocalypse," She teased at her older sister, earning a roll of the eyes and a hair ruffle, a simple yet meaningful symbol of their sisterhood.

The two sisters walked outside as the group finally approached the property. They looked exhausted, Beth noted. Most of them carried weapons. One of them carrying a strange contraption that Beth was almost sure she had never seen before. It almost looked like a bow of sorts. Of course you could spot a gun for a gun, but other than that, Beth wasn't all too familiar with what you would find in an arsenal. Her eyes scanned to find the man who owned the strange weapon. His mouth was set in a tight line as he walked, being sure to keep a fair amount of distance between him and the rest of his group. He had dark brown hair that fell just past his ears and wore a leather jacket. She watched him carefully, noticing how his hands tightened into fists as they finally reached the farm house.

"Why are your arms all scratched up, Beth?" Maggie questioned, an eyebrow raised as she gestured her head towards the arms that hung limp at Beth's sides.

It took Beth a moment to decipher what her sister was saying to her, distracted by watching the angry man. She looked down at her sides and lifted her arms, inspecting them. There were quite a few scratch marks that ran from her wrist to her elbow, almost looking like someone had taken a pencil an etched tiny thin red lines into her arm. It almost looked like a work of art. Shaking her head, she shrugged. "Fell outta a tree."

A man stepped forward and introduced himself to Maggie as Shane. They invited the group inside, Beth catching one last glimpse of the leather jacket wearing man before hurrying off to find some clothes that would be of use to the newcomers. She heard a dim hum of people talking downstairs, it almost sounded like arguing. She hoped that these new people wouldn't upset the peaceful place they called their home. Before she left her bedroom, she impulsively glanced at herself in the mirror, checking for anything that might be out of place. Laughing to herself, she headed downstairs to see what all the commotion was about.

"I can't let you go out there, Shane, it's too risky," The ex-sheriff said with authority, shaking his head. Her Daddy needed some special medical supplies to preform a surgery on Rick's son. The supplies could only be found at their local school in an emergency ambulance that was nearby. They had heard that it was overrun by walkers. "I'll go myself," He suggested in a serious tone as he began to stand from where he sat. He swayed carelessly and would have fallen if her Daddy hadn't practically appeared outta thin air to steady him.

"You've lost a fine amount of blood, Rick," Hershel, her father, told the man. Rick had donated a lot of blood to keep his son going while her Daddy went through the process of removing a bullet from Carl's stomach. Luckily, the two were the same blood type.

"I'm going for sure," Otis said confidently, looking around the room for any signs of disapproval. His wife Patricia simply sighed and looked like she was holding back tears.

After a few more minutes of bickering, it was settled. Shane and Otis would go into town to get the supplies, and the rest of the group would wait for their return. Beth set out clothes and other things that the women of the group might find useful before heading off into the kitchen to help with dinner. She noticed that the man she had been watching earlier didn't say a word as the men argued on who would go. He simply watched with a stoic expression. She had been careful with her glances, not wanting him to catch her eyeing him. She was almost sure the slamming of their screen door was him as she sliced into a carrot.

* * *

The group had made a little camp of their own in their backyard, not wanting to invade on their family's privacy. Hershel accepted this offer greatly, still unsure about the unfamiliar bunch. Her daddy was a good Christian man though, and would not leave these people out for dead. There was only one condition that there not be guns on his property. There had been a small uproar from the black-haired man named Shane, but Rick had assured Hershel that they would respect his wishes.

Beth had been sent out to serve dinner to the group. Her and her sister had made some sort of vegetable stew from what they had left in their fridge. They were running low on fresh product, and soon they would have to find another source of food. Graciously accepting the amount of thanks she got from the people in the group, she finally got to see the rest of them up close. There was one woman with blonde hair named Andrea, who looked a little skeptical of the place. And there was another woman named Carol who had short grey hair, whose eyes were somber. She later found out that her daughter had gone missing. And then there was the mysterious man she had been sneaking glances at all day. When she handed him a bowl of stew, she didn't say anything at all and just watched him as he accepted it.

"Thanks, kid," He muttered, not even looking up at her. Beth was taken aback at the shortness of the man. She knew it couldn't have been something she said, since she didn't say anything. Maybe he was just as unsure about his group being here as Andrea, or the rest of her family.

"Mind if I ask your name?" Beth asked politely, training her green doe eyes on him. She could have sworn that her heart skipped a beat as he looked up at her.

"Daryl, the name's Daryl."


	2. Chapter 2

Wow, thank you so much for all the support on this story so far! I didn't expect to get so many followers or even the amount of reviews that I got with just one chapter. I wouldn't be continuing this story if it weren't for you guys. I hope this fic lives up to all of your expectations! If you like, please review, if you don't, still review! I am always looking to improve and I am very open to suggestions. I want to point out that I'm not planning on following the shows dialogue or actions word for word. I want to make this story my own. It's also been a while since I watched Season 2, so some of the details might be off. Please do keep in mind that this is going to be very slow-paced. Don't expect Daryl and Beth to fall in love right away. As one of my reviewers mentioned, their relationship is starting on the farm this time instead of the prison. So Daryl and Beth barely know each other at this point. Just wanted to throw that out there. (;

* * *

As Beth lay in bed that night, thoughts chased themselves around her mind. She knew it would take some adjusting to all the new people, she wasn't used to having so many unfamiliar faces around her home. Her whole life, she had lived a sheltered childhood. Not even Maggie, who had already gone off to college, had corrupted her in the slightest bit. And then there was Jimmy. She loved Jimmy, she knew that for sure. But ever since walkers started to roam the Earth, she could sense that they had drifted. There was no time for love in an apocalypse, according to him. She had contemplated breaking up with him, but she knew that she would regret it. Besides, it was nice having someone to lean on with all the chaos the world was in. Even if Jimmy didn't care as much.

The last thought that crossed her mind before she drifted off to sleep was a man with a crossbow named Daryl.

* * *

She awoke peacefully that morning, birds chirping outside her window. Sliding out of bed, she pulled her curtains to the side and peaked out into the outside world. She could see the people in their small camp getting ready for the day. The sun was just rising and it was still rather early. The leader of the group, Rick, looked much better than he did yesterday after having caught up on his sleep. He still looked restless, for his son was not yet completely fixed. She knew her daddy would try his best. Glancing to the further side of the camp, a blue tent stood a bit further from the others. Beth didn't even have to guess that it was Daryl's, she just knew. For some reason, he preferred to be alone. She wondered what had happened to him to make him so bitter. Laughing to herself, she shook her head. An apocalypse was enough to make you bitter, that was for sure.

The tent began to move a little and Beth watched intently as the somewhat lanky, yet muscular man stepped out. He raised his arms above his head and bent his back a little, yawning. Beth smiled unintentionally, noticing how his hair was sticking up in all different places. She had been so caught up in watching him that she almost didn't notice when his gaze shifted towards her looking out the window. Gasping, she let go of her curtains and watched them as they _swooshed_ back into their place. Did Daryl just catch her spying on him?

"Beth!" A voice called from downstairs, one that she immediately recognized as Maggie's. "Breakfast is ready, get it while it's still hot!"

"Coming!" Beth replied and began to shed her pajamas for more suitable clothes to be around people in. She settled for a lacy, yet modest white tank top and some black skinny jeans. She had gotten used to the Georgia heat, and preferred jeans over shorts since her daddy didn't let her wear the short ones anyways. She laced up her boots and began to tread downstairs to eat.

She could hear Patricia crying in the living room and a cold feeling flooded through her. She knew Otis had gone on the trip with Shane to get the medical supplies. There could only be one reason why Patricia was crying. Maggie noticed Beth's hesitation as she entered the kitchen and frowned a little. "Otis didn't make it back," her older sister whispered. Beth just nodded solemnly and sat down on a stool.

As she ate in the kitchen, she could hear the banter and small talk of the group through the window. They were talking about the girl that was lost. Carol's daughter, she remembered. Her name was Sophia. She had been chased into the woods by walkers and Rick had lost track of her. They were looking for days near the highway until Carl had been shot and they were forced to relocate here. They viewed the farm house as a sort of safe haven; it was beautiful, and untouched by the apocalypse. She only hoped it would stay that way for a long while.

"I ain't gonna sit on my ass when I've got a trail on her! I found fresh tracks yesterday. That little girl is countin' on me!" She heard Daryl snap. Beth wondered who exactly he was talking to and her question was answered when Shane began to reply.

"That girl is as good as dead. Why are we wasting our time looking for a ghost in the woods?" He yelled, and a subtle crying noise could be heard in the background. Beth thought the cries could only belong to Carol. Her heart ached for the woman. She couldn't imagine losing a child. She also couldn't imagine being alone by herself in an apocalypse where walkers could show up at any second. Finishing the rest of her breakfast, she set her plate in the sink and peeked out the window, this time careful not to be caught watching.

"Nice job, smart ass. Ya upset Carol, an' ya pissed me off. It's my choice if I wanna go lookin' for Sophia and I'm doin' it whether you approve of it or not!" Daryl slung his crossbow over his shoulder and stalked off into the woods. The rest of their group stayed to their business, not wanting to cross paths with an angry Daryl. Beth was starting to notice that Daryl was a force to be reckoned with.

* * *

Daryl returned later that day with nothing to show for. He stalked angrily around the camp, throwing stuff and muttering to himself before finally retreating to his tent, not even coming out for dinner. Beth didn't want to pester him, so she simply set his plate in front of his tent. He didn't appear to be moving, and Beth would have thought he'd been sleeping if he hadn't shifted on his side just then. "I'm leaving your dinner right here," She murmured, almost as quiet as a mouse before walking away.

She almost ran right into Jimmy, but his arms had steadied her right before the impact. They hadn't talked much or even spent much time together since the group came here yesterday. She felt bad and immediately began to apologize before Jimmy placed a hand on her mouth. "Shh," he whispered. "You look beautiful," he said gently into her ear before taking her hand. Beth smiled and tilted her head a little. Maybe Jimmy and her weren't on such bad terms.

"I got a surprise for you," He told her, careful not to make too much noise as he led her behind a small shed that was a distance away from the farm. The sun was just going down and it was beginning to get dark. Before Beth could even ask what he was doing, Jimmy's mouth was pressed against hers, hard and hungry. She let out a strangled gasp and her hands flew to his shoulders, as if she was trying to push him away. Her and Jimmy had kissed before, but it was nothing like this. Heck, she was still a virgin. A low growl escaped Jimmy's throat and he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her tightly against him, his mouth still moving roughly against hers.

"Jimmy, stop―" Beth tried to say before he pushed her to the ground. He climbed on top of her and began pulling at her shirt, his lips now trailing kisses down her neck where he bit at her skin, none too gently. Beth struggled against him as she realized what he was going to do to her. She tried to let out a scream but his hand muffled her efforts to get someone's attention.

An arrow whizzed through the air and landed in a tree that was right near Jimmy's head. Jimmy practically jumped off of Beth, started. "What the hell was that?" He grumbled, looking around before spotting a figure in the shadows.

"You best leave that girl alone before I come over there and make ya," Daryl said, his voice low and intimidating. Beth's whole body was shaking as her mind reeled over what had just happened. Jimmy was going to_ rape_ her if Daryl hadn't showed up. Jimmy stood there, frozen as he tried to make sense of what was going on.

"Go on, get! You heard me!" Daryl continued, his voice raising a little and gaining momentum. Jimmy stole one last glance at Beth in the darkness, something that was a mixture of guilt and hatred before running off. Beth wasn't sure which of the two he was feeling towards her. Daryl began to walk over to her and outstretched his hand towards her.

Beth took his hand gratefully, still shaking with fear. "Th-thanks," she whispered, a single tear leaking down her cheek as she stared up at him. He watched her, as expressionless as ever before simply nodding and walking away.


End file.
